Marti Michell

Marti Michell

It is no wonder that Marti Michell is often introduced as a pioneer in the current quilt revival. In fact, in 1972 when Marti and her husband Richard started Yours Truly, Inc., a patchwork kit company, there was no quilt industry. Since then she has contributed in almost every capacity. A popular teacher, Marti travels extensively, having now taught in 49 states and 26 countries. Look through your library of quilting books and you’ll surely find one of Marti’s books. At last count, nearly 1.75 million books authored by Marti have been sold. Likewise, you undoubtedly have fabric, patterns or tools that she has designed in your collected sewing materials. Since 1995, the Michells have manufactured the From Marti Michell line of acrylic templates and specialty rulers for rotary cutting. Furthermore, Marti’s influence in the quilting industry is enormous. During the Yours Truly years, 1972-85, Marti “discovered” and she and Richard published and promoted into early prominence, quiltmaker/author/teacher personalities such as Marianne Fons, Liz Porter, Harriet Hargrave, Mary Ellen Hopkins, Jean Wells, Susan McKelvey and Cheryl Bradkin. Marti is the recipient of two prestigious quilt industry “lifetime achievement” awards, The Silver Star (2004) and the Michael Kile Award (1991.)

Whether she is participating as a teacher, quilter, author, publisher, manufacturer, designer, consultant, judge or quilt collector, her enthusiasm for and love of quilting is always evident. Marti and Richard live in Atlanta, GA, but she was born and raised in Iowa. She received a B.S. in Textiles and Clothing and Home Ec Journalism from Iowa State University.

The Accidental Quilter Trunk Show Thursday, June 13, 8:00 – 9:30 am
Hear about Marti’s adventures in the quilting world — stories and quilts!

Starry Path

Starry Path

Starry Path Thursday, June 13, 3:00 – 7:00 pm

Domestic Sewing Machine

The Starry Path is a sleek, dramatic classic quilt block. With only 16 pieces and no set-in seams, it is not hard to make. However, the unusual triangles make it a challenge to cut without acrylic tools. Plan to cut and make 3 matching 12″ stars. Marti will also demo how to use the multi-size tools to cut 6″ and 9″ blocks. The class will include cutting and construction techniques for the Zig-Zag Starry Path quilt.

The Starry Path Templates (Marti Michell Product #8586) are required for this class. You may rent the templates from Marti or bring your own.Materials Fee: ($5 material fee will be charged for the use of Marti’s rulers in class. This will be paid to Marti at class time and may be applied to the purchase price. If you bring your own ruler, please mark it with your name. )
The Starry Path Templates (Marti Michell Product #8586) are required for this class. You may rent the templates from Marti or bring your own.

The Kite and Crown block is also called the Rose Star Hexagon block and is sweeping the quilt world. It can be English-paper pieced, but Marti will show you how to rotary cut and machine piece this beautiful block in a fraction of the time.

While it can be cut entirely with the 60° kite shape, Marti will show how and when to substitute the crown shape for two kites. See other blocks and one-patch designs using the same shapes. Learn several ways to join the blocks. This is a fabulous carry-along project; class sewing can be done with regular hand-piecing or machine piecing.Supplies:
Fabrics:
8 – 10 coordinating fabrics (approx. 18 x 22 inches) with a variety of value and scale.Other Supplies:
Students will be using From Marti Michell 2” (Product #8287) or 3” (Product #8288) Kite & Crown Templates. Bring them if you own them.
$5 materials fee for use of acrylic templates in class. May be applied for purchase, or you may bring your own.
Favorite personal sewing notions, thread scissors, seam ripper, etc.
Small folding mirror set (optional) – samples will be available in class.

Supply List –
To cover more territory with fewer pieces, the hexagon we will use is almost as big as an 8 ½” by 11” standard size piece of paper. Coincidentally, that size is perfect for showcasing big beautiful fabric designs. (Everything we talk about can be applied to any size hexagon so if big hexagons aren’t your thing, come along and work on smaller sizes.) ($5 material fee will be charged for the use of Marti’s rulers in class. This will be paid to Marti at class time and may be applied to the purchase price. If you bring your own ruler, please mark it with your name. )Think: Asian, Big Bold Contemporary prints, Large Novelties, Toile or other vignette designs. This could be a variety of collected fabrics on the SAME theme or possibly one fabric with many different scenes or motifs. If you have collected Asian prints, for example, and still do not know what to do with them- this is the perfect class.Theme Fabric: – If only one fabric, bring at least 1 ½ yards with a suitable design for cutting large hexagons. If you are bringing collected fabrics, the minimum would be 12 fat quarters or 12 motifs approximately the size of a standard 8 ½” x 11” piece of paper.

Additional Fabrics : – The Interlocking Hexagon has a three-color woven secondary design. Bring ½ yard each of one light, one medium and one dark fabric that are compatible. Make sure they are not busy prints.